Once Upon A Time
by IceMaidenOfLegend
Summary: This is what it means when they say; once upon a time.


Once Upon A Time

It has been days since they had last known true contact with others. It has been weeks since they had properly eaten. It has been months since they had been able to relax. It has been years since they've slept through the night.

* * *

So far the night has been good to them. The ground is dry but not so much so that the fire will burn the forest down. There are clouds in the sky to seal heat within the Earth and to cloak the smoke. There is only a slight breeze so the flames don't illuminate too much of the forest. It isn't too cold or too hot. The conditions are entirely in their favour.

They, two people, sit on a fallen tree. The dead tree is firm and sturdy and holds their weight without any difficulty. Everything is going well for them but neither is content. They sit in silence with their heads lowered. The silence isn't comfortable but they make no move to break it. Both of them radiate misery and discontentment.

A quiet rustle rises about them and a sai pierces a tree where the sound had come from. She casts him a glance at the suddenness of his action. He refuses to meet her startled, but mostly lifeless, gaze. Eventually she looks away. If she was anyone else she probably would have cried. Perhaps if she had cried then they would have felt that there was something that could be saved.

Her hand closes around the weapon lying next to her. She could get up and leave. It would be simple and he wouldn't stop her. He has no reason to stop her. He has no reason to save her. Even though she regrets it they can't return to where they had been once. Too little had been said and too little had been done.

"Why don't you leave?" he asks, monotonously.

She soon recovers from her shock. "The preparations were incomplete… Until now,"

He nods once, still refusing to look at her. She, too, looks away once more. This is the final proof that there is nothing left. She grabs her sword and walks away. She casts the past from her memories. He isn't the same and neither is she. A separation was bound to happen sometime or another. She shakes her head. The memories are persistent; they don't want to be forgotten.

"Don't let them catch you,"

She freezes as soon as the words are out. They just came out automatically. She bites her lip to stop herself from saying anything else. She lowers her head and starts walking again. Her pace is hurried and she exudes slight desperation. As soon as she's away from the light of the fire she starts running. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if he caught up to her. The odds of him following her are quite insignificant but she can't bear to take the risk.

_It has been so long since they last spoke like they used to._

She pushes herself faster. She can't be near him – not anymore.

_It has been so long since they shared a smile._

She emits a strangled sound. A sob is caught in her throat because she can't bear to let it be known.

_It has been so long since he last held her._

She pushes through the densely crowded branches and undergrowth. She ignores the sensations accompanying the cuts on her body from the razor sharp branches clawing for her.

_It has been so long they could love each other…_

She trips and falls into a clearing. Her ragged breaths glow in the air as pale slivers of moonlight catch on them in the cooling air. She scans her surroundings quickly and finds there to be nothing out of the ordinary. There definitely aren't any of those soldiers who had pursued them both and caused them to flee into the wild. Sorrowfully, she knows that if it wasn't for them she would still be by his side. They would still smile at one another. There may not have been peace but there would have been a chance for it.

It takes all of her strength not to scream into the night. It takes all she has not to curse everything that's befallen her (and him) in recent times. It's true, she understands that they are young and perhaps too foolish but means nothing when there's joy. Their joy has been stolen and now they must live in a world darkened by never ending sorrows and grief.

She claws at the moist dirt. Her jaw is clenched tightly. She's tensed like a coiled viper ready to strike but is so weak as well. She used to have so much but it's meaningless now. She pushes herself up; the ground is too wet and too like tears that have not yet dried. She wants to curse it all and disappear but she has to keep going.

There's one place where she's welcome – only one, but it's enough. She only needs one reason to continue and make her forget her woes. She can regain her lost position and fight for survival, both hers and his, and it should be enough. The one who claims friends to be more important than love was indeed a fool, or so she will insist. No friendship can replace the feelings that have exiled and frowned upon.

She looks to the sky. Her eyes are brimming with fresh salt water tears. The moonlight reflects in her violet orbs. If it weren't were for the unshed tears and the almost hidden emotion on her face you would think that she is at peace with everything.

_Perhaps not all love can be triumphant. Perhaps I was too often wrong, but now we know how wrong they are when they say Once Upon A Time…_

**Author's Note: I like to try new styles of writing so that's why there's that awkward bit with the italics. They aren't thoughts they're simply observations that she, and others who know of the situation, will make. At least that's the only way that I can describe it (that might not necessarily be right but I find it hard to explain).**

**Thank you for reading. I hope you have found some enjoyment here, and if you have not then I apologise for my lack of skill.**

_Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew or any part of it. I only own this plot and the laptop used to type this tale._


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